School Bus Fleet, July 2015

6 SCHOOL B U S F L E E T J U LY 2 0 1 5 Adding 3 point belts to buses Thanks for the story on the Indiana district that is piloting the three point system see District to launch school bus seat belt study April May 2015 pg 12 I feel like Im going it alone sometimes down here We ordered all of our new buses 25 of them with threepoint and plan to continue DON CARTER Director of Transportation School Board of St Lucie County Port St Lucie Florida I applaud the Westfield schools for taking this very innovative and proactive step in assessing the various aspects of the great seat belt debate Everyone in the school transportation industry has an opinion on this issue and very few of us are in total agreement on many of those aspects I think as an industry we should all welcome this pilot project approach as a way to hopefully answer many of our questions such as Will students actually wear them Does the use of lapshoulder belts actually lead to fewer discipline problems Will kids actually be safer These are all burning questions that really need to be answered and what better place or way to do it than in the field under real conditions I for one am anxiously looking forward to the results with a hope that it may actually lay to rest some of the questions and arguments MAX CHRISTENSEN Executive Officer of School Transportation Iowa Department of Education Des Moines Iowa Promoting school bus safety in the classroom Im contacting you because I have an interest that may be inclusive for all school districts as it relates to the teaching strategies used in relation to the school bus as an extension to the classroom Major attention has been focused on instruction of school bus safety rules in the classroom Many districts have opted to highlight driver professional development in their teacher professional development curriculum I think this is a productive tool in that it allows both parties to share ideas and discussions that promote student learning Measures are now in place to support the code of conduct which also supports the classroom and school bus safety and behavior With this in mind I am proposing that we have our bus manufacturing companies support our learning mission by providing bus paraphernalia for the students to use in daily classroom activities This paraphernalia can be readily available as bus puzzles bus computer apps coloring books and arts and crafts These learning skills will also support our National School Bus Safety Week It is crucial to our incoming kindergartners and elementary children as they will undergo instructional hours in learning classroom and school bus safety rules I ask your support in this mission as it will be a safe beneficial practice to all CAROLYN HOLMES Supervisor II Vehicle Maintenance Jackson Miss Public Schools WRITE TO US We welcome letters expressing opinions on SCHOOL BUS FLEET and topics it covers Letters may be edited and become property of the magazine Send comments to info@ schoolbusfleet com or Editor SCHOOL BUS FLEET 3520 Challenger St Torrance CA 90503 www schoolbusfleet com General Manager James Blue VP Publisher Emeritus Frank Di Giacomo Associate Publisher Mark Hollenbeck Executive Editor Thomas McMahon Managing Editor Nicole Schlosser EDITORIAL ADVISORY BOARD David Anderson director of transportation and fleet service Adams 12 Five Star Schools Thornton Colorado Michael Dallessandro transportation director Greece N Y Central School District Ted Finlayson Schueler president Safety Rules Syracuse New York Tim Flood executive vice president The Trans Group Spring Valley New York Derek Graham North Carolina state director of pupil transportation Pam McDonald director of transportation Orange Calif Unified School District Michael Shields director of transportation and auxiliary services Salem Keizer Public Schools Salem Oregon Cheryl Wolf special needs transportation consultant Lafayette Indiana Senior Production Manager Sarah Paredes Art Director Yuda Chen Audience Development Manager Bill Ciesielczyk For Subscription Inquiries 888 239 2455 Classified Advertising Sales Donna Stewart 405 260 1678 Fax 405 260 1684 Email donna_ stewart@ cox net Edward J Bobit Chairman 1961 2014 NAPT Hall of Fame 1999 President and CEO Ty Bobit VP and Chief Operating Officer Cyndy Drummey Chief Financial Officer Armand Del Duca BUSINESS EDITORIAL OFFICES Bobit Business Media 3520 Challenger St Torrance CA 90503 310 533 2587 Fax 310 533 2512 Email sbf@ bobit com Website www schoolbusfleet com General Manager James Blue 310 533 2449 Fax 310 533 2512 Email james blue@ bobit com VP Publisher Emeritus Frank Di Giacomo 49 S Maple Ave Marlton NJ 08053 856 596 0999 Fax 856 596 0168 Associate Publisher Mark Hollenbeck 3115 NE McDonald Ln McMinnville OR 97128 503 472 8200 Fax 503 472 8228 Email mark hollenbeck@ bobit com PRINTED IN U S A feedback